This week, the focus has been on building a platform for meat sales and establishing an AI-powered customer service system. The first step was to set up a new hackathon account and configure the Azure OpenAI service, deploying advanced language models like GPT-4, GPT-35-Turbo, text-embedding-ada-002, and DALL-E-3. To securely access the Azure API, a .env file was created to store the necessary credentials.

Next, Python was installed and configured for the AI development work. While exploring the Azure OpenAI API, a few challenges were encountered, such as hitting the API quota limit and not being able to apply for a free ChatGPT API key due to a young GitHub account. To overcome these obstacles, a classmate's API key was used to interact with the AI models and gain a better understanding of their capabilities.

Using the classmate's API key, the AI models were engaged, but the responses were not always as accurate or helpful as expected. This experience highlighted the importance of effective prompt engineering to get the most out of these powerful models. To address this, a comprehensive course on building generative AI applications was taken, covering topics like understanding LLMs, selecting the right model, and building applications responsibly.

The course's segments on prompt engineering best practices proved invaluable. By experimenting with different prompt approaches, the author discovered that subtle changes in wording and structure could significantly impact the quality and relevance of the AI's output. This realization underscored the importance of carefully considering the nuances of language when working with these models.

Further exploration included using the text-embedding-ada-002 model to generate semantic representations of prompts, which were then used to fine-tune the responses from GPT-4 and GPT-35-Turbo. The DALL-E-3 model was also experimented with, generating intriguing visual concepts based on written descriptions. These explorations have given the author a deeper understanding of how to effectively utilize the various AI tools at their disposal.

As the week came to a close, the focus shifted to the upcoming projects – the meat sales platform and the AI-powered customer service system. The key insights and techniques learned from the comprehensive course, especially the importance of responsible AI development and effective prompt engineering, will be crucial in tackling the challenges that may arise. The author feels well-prepared to put their skills to the test and see how the AI models can enhance the user experience and streamline operations for the meat sales platform, as well as explore how the AI customer service system can provide efficient and personalized support to customers.

The groundwork laid this week, including the setup of the Azure OpenAI service, the exploration of AI models, and the mastery of prompt engineering techniques, has positioned the author well to embark on these new endeavors with confidence. The lessons learned and the skills acquired will undoubtedly serve as a strong foundation for the successful development and deployment of the meat sales platform and the AI-powered customer service system.